PANA-MANIA! Driving in PANAMA is for HIGHLY SKILLED drivers! Here's why!
Vložit
- čas přidán 28. 07. 2024
- I spent a few days in Panama and got to experience an interesting automotive market and driving in a variety of conditions there. You need to have some good driving skills to drive there and here's why!
Let me know what you think in the comments below!
Thanks for watching! Please consider subscribing if you like what you see.
👉Follow me on twitter: / kerleem
👉Follow me on Instagram: / kerleem
👉 Follow me on Bluesky: @kerleem.bsky.social
-------------------
#PANAMA #DRIVING
-------------------
Chapters:
00:00 - Intro
01:12 - Montage of different roads
02:10 - Recap
02:42 - Chicken tax, Hilux, Fortuner and the automotive market
04:00 - USDM, RoW spec cars mixed together
05:00 - SUVs/Trucks are necessary
05:25 - WIndow Tint; windshield tint!
06:20 - Yellow American School Buses!!! Party buses!
06:57 - only rear license plates
07:34 - Driving here is a challenge, it's not for the average driver!
09:05 - Road signs, mix of EU-style and North American style
09:50 - Closing, let me know what you think in the comments below! - Auta a dopravní prostředky
🇵🇦❤
💯 Nice one! 🇵🇦 Panama, the Switzerland of Latin America 🏦 It’s in my top 3 relocation destinations. If I understood correctly there is a pretty big American pensionado community. I would be very interested in more footage and stories! I live in Amsterdam too, but am currently in Brazil 🇧🇷 Cheers!
Oh and those buses are called Diablo rojos btw... though there are lots that are party buses or actual school buses
They are so cool!
the Philippines has the most unique car market in South East Asia. You could see a Toyota Rush (emerging market oriented MPV), JEtour Ice Cream (Chinese mini EV), BMW 3 series (explanatory), Toyota Land cruiser, Toyota Fortuner, Cadillac escalade(USDM grey import) and like a f150 all next to each other. Oh and dont forget the JDm conversions(usually suzuki Every Wagons or older models such as the Toyota Noah, Mitsubishi Delica, etc. also regarding the tint, the Philippines also has super dark tint and the reason is usually privacy, however sometimes we have the ceramic tint which is dark from the outside but clear from ithe inside or something like that. Usually heat is a big factor as well.
We have the rush in Panama also 70's series an the real LC 300
The black tinted windows are in Panama a combination of security/privacy, fashion, and yes, there's the energy efficiency aspect, the car will most definitely be cooler under the sun. The dashboard will never crack if you keep the UV rays out of your car. If you install a decent quality one, it will last 6 years or more. And the installer should guide you to install, maybe a medium tint out front, and a darker one on the rest of the windows. Otherwise, yes, it will be a bit sketchy driving at night, specially if you loose a headlamp.
That being said, at night, it's war. Light warfare. Install the brightest tech known to man and go. Most will abide by the rules of the road, lowering the high beams, specially on the Panamericana, but don't expect it from everyone. There will be outliers. Some will run highbeams cause they lost a lowbeam. And some will run high output LED bars, meant for off-road use only inside city limits.
Also, some factions (government or traketos) run tagless cars with tinted windows, some are rentals, some are stolen. All will carry some people with guns. Just be very aware of your surroundings and be a cool customer, cool as a cucumber, nothing will happen. Most of the time at least.
Interesting perspective, thanks so much for watching!
Those Buses are called Diablo Rojo. I love Panama I grew up in the Canal Zone. And driving was Crazy back in the 70s and 80s.
Diablo Rojo?! So cool!
That’s awesome! Thanks for watching
Those roads looked easy compared to my drive in the Philippines. This seems easy for me
Haven’t been there but I’m sure it’s worse!
Taiwan also has the same roads as panama
Panamanian here. Deep window tint is allowed with pretty much no restrictions for private vehicles. Deep tints are tightly regulated on school transport buses (colegiales), is somewhat regulated on taxis and tipically not allowed on public transportation without air conditioning. Any pimped-out Diablo Rojo/Verde/Amarillo (old north-American school bus) will have no a/c and will be fined IF caught. Window tint really helps the car's AC to stand a chance against 90 degree weather and high humidity. A car with no A/C can be a bad time year long.
Weirdly, most auto insurance providers in Panama would (and probably still do) offer discounts on window tint installation, or a slightly lower rate if you have window tint installed. They think it somehow deters theft (?), or prolongs the life of the car (?). It does save the car's interior.
Interesting, yes it definitely helped for the heat, but it was tough to see out at night!
Thanks for watching!
@@Kerleem Night driving is best avoided. You can tell who does most of their driving at night, they have very light or no tinting. Also, I bet you saw the night road and street lighting/markings are quite poor to non-existent (compared to the U.S. and lots of other places)...
I’ve been to El Salvador last summer, and it’s similar to what you’re experiencing in Panama. It’s interesting because we get a mix of both North American vehicles (Tacoma, Rogue, Sorento, Sentras, Explorer, Accent, Versa, Río, Corolla, CRV, etc) and the rest of the world vehicles (Hilux, Frontier (not the American version), L200, Montero Sport, BT-50, Prado, Dmax, Jimny, and Picanto). Likewise in Panama, driving in El Salvador is very chaotic. It’s like the Jungle, as what my parents would describe. It is not for the faint of heart. The drivers In El Salvador are more aggressive than the drivers in the USA. You should come one day. But Nice video.
Interesting! Thanks!
I really hope we can do a Delhi trip together! Will be super fun to see you drive there!!
☺️☺️
Fortuner is a pretty common SUV you will not stand out... you would need something like a cybertruck to stand out as you possibly know by now, driving is easy as long as you let taxis alone and stay away from them .... taxis are responsable for 87% of the accidents in Panamá City, about the pot holes I think you are exaggerated new york, Miami, those have lots of pot holes... Panama depends on the area, also driving in London or madrid is more stressful and Asia is the worse for driving Philippines... or anywhere in India.. here roads are very wide so it gives you time to adjust as long as you stay out of taxis 😅
Thanks for watching. Fair points. I did like the wide roads!
If you drive new york city you could drive in panama city 🇵🇦
Haha and now I have done both!
I'm from Trinidad & Tobago. When were you in Trinidad?
My family is from there! 🇹🇹
@@KerleemGreat!
Those american school buses are all over central america, they call them chicken buses, cause there would always be multiple chickens on the roof or in the bus from people transporting them.
It’s so strange to see! 🤣
Well that toyota fortuner is a very common car here in Panama to stand out you'll need a very hi end car not that 😂 you'll find out during your trip
Haha yes it was very common. Still a nice car!
Never rent a car in the airport !!!
I have a question, hope you will answer, I noticed you used your cellphone for navigation and use of the internet.
How you able to use it if the cell has US carrier service.
Can you explained in details, I will appreciate it.
Why not rent a car at the airport?
Look into international roaming for your smartphone or purchase a local SIM card.
@@Kerleem , long story, after arriving in Panama, I approached one rental office, I rented a car for a month. After few days in Panama I was overwhelmed, the traffic etc.
I tried to returned the car in via España, they offered me a better deal, I took it. I kept the car after an enjoyable one month in Panama 🇵🇦
I'm an egyptian living in panama for 2 years now, panama driving is not even close to requiring high skill driving. I've driven in India, Bangladesh, and other much much worse countries for driving
That is true but for the average American driver, Panama would be quite difficult and chaotic. But there are definitely worse places
Which rental car company did you go with?
I believe it was Hertz
@@Kerleem, it was AVIS